City titan Spencer on track for rebound

THE investment empire of City grandee Lord Spencer is set for a revival.

Trading tycoon Spencer, who took his seat in the House of Lords last month, saw an overall £12 million loss at his investment vehicle IPGL Holdings in the year to March 31, 2020, accounts show.

That followed an £88.8 million profit the previous year, which was aided by the sale of his stake in the NEX stock exchange for £91 million.

The value of its assets was flat at just over £1 billion but it made £13 million in charitable donations. The Conservative Party donor and ex-Tory treasurer also made £1.4 million in political donations.

However, Spencer is thought to have seen the value of several key investments soar since then – including City broker Numis, which advised scores of companies on emergency fundraisers, and trading platform AJ Bell.

The 65- year- old, who has turned to angel investing since selling NEX to Chicago’s CME for £3.9 billion in 2018, is also thought to have made £50 million from merging Singapore Life into Aviva’s Singaporean operations and receiving backing for the combined group.

Spencer, whose son Thomas joined IPGL’s board last year, also backs growing online shopping payments business Klarna; English sparkling wine maker Chapel Down; and Elvie, the inventor of the first silent wearable breast pump.